Did you just say “Fat Bike”?

We use to say that once you know how to use a bicycle, it’s forever. It’s virtually impossible to forget how to ride it. It’s in your brain for the rest of your life, or something like that. As far as I’m concerned, I would add that “it depends on the type of bicycle”…

Last Saturday afternoon, I had the surprise of riding a new type of bicycle, the “Fat Bike”. What is the difference? It has big wheels and tires that allow you to drive on unstable surfaces like sand, gravel or even snow. What a crazy idea! It’s already exhausting enough to pedal in Paris, so how about here in the mountains ?

I’m not grumbling; I’m just a little bit picky. And even though ski is now a new passion for me (that requires a certain physical health though), I didn’t want to pedal at high altitude at all! At that moment I was thinking about my cousin Tony. He’s a BMX Freestyle professional rider. Unlike me, he doesn’t care about risks and is not scared of spending a week in a hospital room. He loves extreme sports that require a certain spirit of challenge and adventure. He would have loved the Fat Bike.

Seeing the Fat Bike for the first time was just an appetizer because apparently here in Montgenèvre, they had prepared everything! Olivier, the nicest man in the place, gave me the bike and told me that there is a motor in the bike. And not a small one… A Bosch motor! (OMG, can you please ask for a room at the hospital for me, right now?)

I finally persuaded myself to try the Fat Bike. I rode it, determined to tell you my experience in extreme sports. At the same time, I saw a man with the same bike. He rode up the slope in no time and descended it as fast as Speedy Gonzalez. A true show!

I didn’t want to challenge him, so I decided to ride the Fat Bike as “relaxed” as possible and let him enjoy his moment of glory. The Fat Bike is an all-terrain masterpiece, a perfect gift for every daredevil (like Tony). If you are more like me (a little bit picky), you can do it as well. A short try is enough to enjoy the ride and confirm the power of this bike.